2010 UIM F1 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
Grand Prix of China, Linyi – October 3, round 3 of 8
For immediate release
Sunday, October 3rd, 2010
TEAM QATAR’S JAY PRICE SEALS FIFTH PLACE IN LINYI
· Team Qatar’s Andy Elliott forced out of Linyi race
· Alex Carella takes start-to-finish win for Mad Croc Team
LINYI (China): Team Qatar’s Jay Price had to settle for fifth position in the 14th Grand Prix of China on the Yihe River in Linyi, north-east China, on Sunday.
The 2008 World Champion was forced to start from lower down the grid for the third round of the UIM F1 World Championship, after changing an engine during the morning’s practice session. The demotion from his original second place meant the Team Qatar driver was unable to challenge the front-runners in a race that was hampered by two late yellow flag incidents, the second of which was in place when the chequered flag was raised.
Italian Alex Carella led Mad Croc team-mate Sami Selio from start-to-finish to take a convincing win. The result moved the pair into a joint lead in the UIM F1 Drivers’ standings and demoted Price to third place. Team Qatar’s Andy Elliott was forced to retire from the race with technical problems and now holds 10th in the points’ standings.
“It was a disappointing day for the Qatar Team but that is our luck,” admitted Khalid Bin Arhama Al-Kuwari, Head of Formula Racing at the Qatar Marine Sports Federation (QMSF). “We changed no less than three engines during the weekend and the change today meant that Jay started down in eighth instead of second. Andy also had engine problems and they forced him out, but the only consolation for us was that some of the other front-runners also struggled to score points and Jay did manage to finish fifth and gain seven points.”
The race
Twenty drivers from 13 countries took the start of the third round of the UIM F1 World Championship, but Price’s engine changed forced him to start lower down the running order, with Elliott in 18th. Carella and Selio led the way from Al-Hameli and the Emirati managed to pass Selio to take second as Price climbed to seventh position through two laps.
Elliott was forced to withdraw after lap five with engine problems, but Price continued to overcome his engine management system woes to maintain seventh. Carella led from Selio, Fabio Comparato, Francesco Cantando and Jonas Andersson through seven laps, as Price began to close in on the top five.
There were no changes on the leader board through 14 laps, but Price began to come under pressure from Seebold and Al-Qamzi. Price maintained sixth with seven laps remaining of the 2.25km course, as Selio began to ease his pace and Carella surged further into the distance at the front of the field. A yellow flag was raised when Tomas Cermak overturned his BaBa with six laps remaining and the entire field bunched up to leave the prospect of a thrilling sprint to the finish.
Action resumed with three laps to go and Carella managed to keep his lead, as Cantando passed Comparato to take third. But, when Davide Padovan crashed and forced a second yellow flag, the race ended under a yellow flag with Carella taking a convincing win and Price climbing into fifth position.
Second free practice
Jay Price recorded the second fastest time in the second free practice session for the F1 runners. The former World Champion clocked 52.66s, which put him comfortably clear of third-placed Sami Selio and 0.74s behind session winner Ahmed Al-Hameli. Elliott ran for 15 laps, posted a fastest tour of 56.64s and slotted into 15th position. The downside for Price was being forced to change an engine during the session.
Italy’s David Del Pin set the fastest time in second free practice for the F4 race with a time of 1m 15.81s, as Team Qatar’s Khalid Saleh Al-Shamlan improved on Saturday’s runs to snatch the fourth fastest time, but the actual F4 race was cancelled for the second day.
14th Grand Prix of China, Linyi – race results
1. Alex Carella (I) Team Mad Croc 20 pts
2. Sami Selio (FIN) Team Mad Croc 15 pts
3. Francesco Cantando (I) Singha F1 Racing Team 12 pts
4. Fabio Comparato (I) 800 Doctor 9 pts
5. Jay Price (QA) |Team Qatar 7 pts
6. Tim Seebold (USA) Team Abu Dhabi 5 pts
7. Duarte Benavente (P) F1 Atlantic Team 4 pts
8. Thani Al-Qamzi (UAE) F1 Team Abu Dhabi 3 pts
9. Jonas Andersson (S) Team Azerbaijan 2 pts
10. Luigi Roberto (I) 800 Doctor 1 pt
Andy Elliott (GB) Team Qatar DNF
2010 UIM F1 World Championship – Drivers’ points after round 3
1. Sami Selio (FIN) Team Mad Croc 35 pts
1. Alex Carella (I) Team Mad Croc 35 pts
3. Jay Price (QA) Qatar F1 Team 28 pts
4. Francesco Cantando (I) Singha F1 Racing Team 27 pts
5. Thani Al-Qamzi (UAE) F1 Team Abu Dhabi 24 pts
6. Ahmed Al-Hameli (UAE) F1 Team Abu Dhabi 20 pts
7. Pierre Lundin (S) CTIC China Team 12 pts
8. Fabio Comparato (I) 800 Doctor 9 pts
8. Jonas Andersson (S) Team Azerbaijan 9 pts
10. Andy Elliott (GB) Qatar F1 Team 7 pts
11. Davide Padovan (I) Rainbow Team 6 pts
12. Tim Seebold (USA) Team Abu Dhabi 5 pts, etc
Ends
For further information:
Neil Perkins, NDP Publicity Services, Mobile: + 44 7831 123153, E-mail: ndppublicity@googlemail.com, www.ndp-publicity.com (press releases).
www.qmsf.org
www.f1boat.com